Original Item. Only One Available. This is an exceedingly scarce but very rough WWII M1-C Paratrooper helmet in full World War II Configuration, without any post-war modifications. These are exceptionally difficult to find in any condition, and this one has both the correct shell & liner, with the snaps on the helmet chinstrap to attach to the liner. This M1-C paratrooper helmet is what would have been used during WWII by members of the various Parachute Infantry Regiments towards the end of WWII.

M1Cs were a variant of the U.S. Army’s popular and iconic M1 helmet developed in WWII to replace the M2 helmet. There were several differences between the M1 and M2 including the bales (chin strap hinges). The M2 had fixed, spot welded “D” bales, so named because of the shape they took. It was found that these bales broke when sat down or dropped. It was refitted to use the swivel bales, which could be moved around and was therefore less prone to breaking.

The M-1C helmet retains its original cork grain paint and swivel bale chinstrap loops. It also has original shuttle loom sewn chinstraps set with original hardware and snaps. The shell is marked with an incomplete heat stamp 1160 indicating it was manufactured by the McCord Radiator and Manufacturing Company of Detroit Michigan. The shell itself has a rear seam, and the rim itself is actually stainless steel. This is notable as these were only produced with stainless steel rims for 4-6 weeks between October and November 1944 before being switched to Manganese rims. 

The liner is an original WWII issue M1 helmet "high pressure" liner, stamped with the Westinghouse Company logo, and is an original manufactured paratrooper liner. Many liners were "updated" after production to fill the need, but this example was that way from the start. The liner is heavily worn and damaged with retained suspension and sweatband, although the sweatband is heavily cracked and torn, and the suspension has full breaks and tears with heavy oxidation staining. The cup chinstrap is gone, and the two straps for its attachment are extremely worn and stained, with one having broken on one side, now attached together with a safety pin. The liner is definitely a correct "high pressure" WWII issue, and stamped with a W for the Westinghouse Electric Co Manufactured in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

This "high pressure" manufactured M-1 helmet liner is identified by an embossed "W" in the crown (which is still Westinghouse's logo to this day). Westinghouse was the largest M-1 helmet liner producer and had two production divisions; Micarta and Bryant Electric. The Micarta Division produced about 13,000,000 M-1 helmet liners and the Bryant Electric Division about 10,000,000. Westinghouse Electric Company started M-1 helmet liner delivery in May 1942. Westinghouse did have a contract to produce airborne liners and converted an unknown amount to airborne configuration. Westinghouse discontinued production around August 17, 1945 when the war ended.

This true M1 liner can be identified through the frontal eyelet hole. Other correct features include OD Green #3 cotton herringbone twill (HBT) cloth suspension liner. This HBT suspension is held tightly within the M-1 helmet liner by rivets and a series of triangular "A" washers. The three upper suspension bands are joined together with the correct tie string. This way the wearer could adjust the fit. The original suspension is definitely aged and worn, with some tears, oxidation staining, and damage. One of the two snaps for attachment of the shell chinstrap has residue inside the snap, so it no longer works. 

Paratrooper helmets and liners are the hardest to find of all WWII M1 helmets. This is a very rough example, but it is certainly original and will make a fine addition to any WWII collection.

M1C Helmet
The M1C helmet was a variant of the U.S. Army's popular and iconic M1 helmet. Developed in World War II to replace the earlier M2 helmet, it was not made available until issued to paratroopers in January of 1945. It was different from the M2 in various ways, most importantly its bails (chinstrap hinges). The M2 had fixed, spot welded "D" bales so named for their shape, similar to early M1s. It was found that when sat on or dropped, these bails would snap off. The solution was the implementation of the swivel bail, which could move around and so was less susceptible to breaking.

Like the M2, its most visible difference from the standard infantry M1 helmet was the liner. The liner of the M1C, like most paratrooper liners, had a set of "A yokes" or straps fixed to the side of the liner to enable the use of a four-point chinstrap with leather chin cup to give support to the head and neck and prevent adverse movement during jumps. It used a simple but strong and reliable belt loop-type connection to secure the chinstrap to the a-yokes, which could be opened or closed from either side and thus partially removed without tools. This retention system was not significantly different to the M2's, and the normal infantry chinstrap could still be attached to the helmet shell if desired. Often, however, these modified liners could not be manufactured in time for jumps so they were modified by the soldiers themselves.

Another difference of the M1C was the chinstraps (this was seen on the M2). The chinstraps found on the M2 and M1C both had a button snap on the end so as to be fastened to the liner.

Despite the numerous differences between the M1C and the standard M1 helmet, the shell of the M1C is practically identical to standard swivel bail infantry helmets, making a concrete identification of a helmet as an M1C difficult. There's an argument to be made that the important part of an M1C is actually just a liner with the four-point chinstrap that can slip into any M1 helmet.

The M1C would continue in US service after World War II, with a new split-fabric chinstrap introduced between the Korean War and the Vietnam War not dissimilar to the one seen on the later PASGT helmet, but retaining the belt loop-style chinstrap connection. The M1C would remain in service until the adoption of PASGT, though the M1C would remain a fairly uncommon sight after Korea. They do turn up in various non-airborne units in Vietnam photography, however, suggesting that outside of jump-rated units they were treated like any other M1 and that they were perhaps more common than some thought.